Abandoned
by IzzBot
Summary: Based on the episode Bye Bye Basement. With no place to go, Hyde finds himself at the Formans, desperate and with loads of resentment towards those that abandoned him. Dark and very angsty fic. Wrnng: language, drug use, yadayadayada...
1. SafeHaven

**Disclaimer: Hyde doesn't belong to me, unfortunately.**

**A/N: This is a fic based on the episode "Bye Bye Basement", where Hyde returns to live in the Forman's basement after his parents leave him. **

The wind whistled in Hyde's ears as he leaned against the cold brick of the Forman's house. The past few hours replayed in his head. His dad's fake sympathetic face before he told him, moving his few belongings out, walking aimlessly before relenting and hauling his stuff over to his safe-haven. Because that's what this suburban house was to him. And he admitted- this place felt more like home than living with either of his parents ever did. This was where he grew up- where he hid when trying to avoid his mother when she got into one of her moods- as in her drunken moods. This was where he punched Kelso in the eye and made Fez wear a dress and teased Eric about Donna. This was the place he turned to when he had nowhere else to go.

Like now.

He always seemed to turn up here, his meager possessions in a bag, alone. He could not seem to take those final steps into the house, though. Drumming his knuckles against the wall, Hyde wondered what his parents were doing at this moment. He imagined them laughing about him, glad to be rid of the kid. Driving down a deserted highway, getting as far away from him as they could. Probably planning to head off to some exotic place and open up shop, maybe have more kids that they wouldn't abandon. Maybe, as the car turned a corner, a sharp turn over the Rockies, perhaps. And his dad would look away from the road for a moment, to smile at his mom, so happy that they finally decided to get back together. And maybe she would give him an adoring look back, and then close her eyes to listen to some crappy Dolly Parton love song that came on the radio. The wind blowing back their hair as they sing the lyrics: off-key, but they don't care. And then when he looks away from his precious loves' face, he notices with shock that they are headed for a cliff. He slams on the brakes and they screech loudly in the silent night; his mom screams. But he is too late, and they go over. And maybe, Hyde mused, their last thoughts as they are flying through the air- headed for the pointy, jagged rocks below- their last thoughts are that they should have never left their beautiful boy. If only.

The door creaked only slightly as he pushed it open and stepped inside the basement. There were thankfully only shadows to greet him, Eric having gone to bed already. Hyde noticed an old watch on the table and read the time- ten after midnight. The whole house was probably sleeping peacefully by now. Peacefully unaware of the vagrant crashing in their basement.

Hyde easily found his old stash, hidden good and tight in his old room. He went through the lot of it before falling into a fitful sleep.

**A/N: Short, I know. I wrote this awhile ago, though, and I just wanted to post it. I'll probably write more eventually. Maybe turn it into a full blown story, if this gets reviewed. **


	2. Alone

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hyde. At all. I don't even have rights to the 'fro. And, really, that's just depressing. **

Three days came and went and Hyde continued his charade. Eric had no idea that at the end of the night, when he went upstairs to bed, one of his slacker friends failed to leave and hid out in his basement. It wasn't that hard, not really. Hyde was used to staying late at the Formans- no one thought anything of it.

And he felt somewhat powerful in his deception. As long as he didn't have a permanent place to stay he was not forced to answer to anyone. He was free. To a certain extent.

He knew that he was completely welcome- he _had _lived here once before. But if he told them there would be all these damn questions. Like where his father was. And at the moment Hyde was definitely not comfortable answering those nosy inquiries. And the pity that was sure to come with the answers. If there was anything he hated- it was pity.

The sun was low on the horizon and Hyde was meandering down the quiet streets of Point Place- not sure of where to go or what to do. He wasn't in the mood to hang out with the gang. They were all just to smiley as of late. Well, ok, except Eric- who was still all neurotic over Donna. But that just annoyed Hyde even more- all Eric cared about was himself and his own damn problems. It was always about Donna and their relationship and their goddamn _feelings. _It made Hyde want to barf.

And Hyde felt safe in that fact, actually. Because it meant that Eric wouldn't notice him and his sad dilemmas. Hyde's problems weren't ones that he particularly wanted to share with his friends. So, if that meant that in the circle the only point of conversation was his best friend's ex- well, then, so be it.

But then there was this gnawing in his stomach. And this weird emptiness in his chest that made him want to scream. And sometimes, when he was with his friends, he just wanted to shout, "Look at me, goddamnit!"

Sometimes he wondered if his façade was too good. That his zen had taken over and there was no _him _left. He wasn't himself, not really. Because if all his energies were devoted to hiding and distracting from the truth- then when the hell does he have time to be himself? It's all an act, really. Hyde was an excellent actor. Quite prepared for a lead on Broadway, he thought.

Suddenly, Hyde found himself running. His clunky boots thwapped against the concrete and he could only hear that beat. Desperately, he tried to ignore the voice in his head. But with each awkward stride, the voice became rhythmic. _Alone. Alone. Alone._

His arms pumped ferociously at his sides and he found himself flying down the neighborhoods, into the twilight. His throat burned and his side ached but the adrenaline was pumping from his head to his feet and didn't allow him a moments rest.

Memories swam into his consciousness, a mess of emotions, sticking in his brain and making him go into a full out sprint- trying to shake them. He just saw _her. _His shit of a mother. Hysterical, laughing, drunk, sad, sobbing, content. And then another look came to mind and Hyde's eyes started to burn. Dead. In her eyes there was nothing but harsh cold, and even if she was still living and breathing, she would always be dead to him. She and his damn father could go rot. Because they were fucking gone and they would dare not leave a trace of their presence left in their son. Hyde would make sure of it.

His legs started to protest painfully and Hyde breathed in hollow spurts, gasping and wheezing. The momentum was still there and he found himself to be falling over himself. His legs gave up and buckled into themselves, tripping him up.

His skull thudded hard on the sidewalk and sensitive skin ripped against rough ground, shedding bits of blood. Hyde brought a scraped hand up to his lip and recognized the metallic taste. A groan escaped his lips and he rolled over onto his back, feeling the heaviness of his abused body. The past miles finally caught up with him and he sucked in as much air as he could; trying to calm his racing heart and replenish precious oxygen to his lungs.

"Hey, Fez, look. Hyde's _wasted!_"

Kelso laughed and through half-open eyes Hyde could see his brown hair flapping above him. Fez came into view and he looked confused and a bit worried. Hyde glared up at the pair. "I'm not wasted, you moron! I fell."

His face heated up sporadically as two more faces appeared overhead, towering over his prostrate form. Eric leaned over and probed with his eyes. "Hyde, what the hellhappened?"

Jackie squealed and ran behind Kelso. "Ew! Is that blood? Ew! Ew! Ewww! He's dripping all over the sidewalk!"

Hyde felt like smacking her but settled with a death glare that he hoped permeated through his skewed sunglasses.

Eric and Kelso helped him up so forcefully that Hyde almost tipped over as he became painfully vertical. He rolled his eyes at the bewildered faces of his friends. He wondered how he seemed to fall at the exact place that they all were gathered- that is until he looked to his right and saw the bright, colorful sign of the movie theater. Oh, great. His stupid feet had betrayed him. Of course, _here _was where he would end up. Couldn't be, you know, somewhere that _everybody _he knew wouldn't be able to witness his embarrassment.

Four questioning eyes met his avoidant own. Hyde straightened his sunglasses and turned on his heel- away from the perplexed group. As he sauntered in the opposite direction he heard Donna's voice. "Hey, I've got the tickets. Wait, is that Hyde? Where's he going?"

He heard Jackie scoffing even as he turned the corner, he shoved his hands deep in his pockets and lowered his head. "Damn, that boy's got _issues._ What's his problem, anyway?"

Kelso gave a short laugh. "Oh, that's just Hyde."

Eric cut in. "Yeah, he can't be normal like everyone else, he'd find it boring."

Hyde smiled to himself, agreeing with the statement.

Donna wondered aloud if they should drag him to the movies with them, but Eric shot her down, saying he was in one of his _moods._

Hyde mentally admonished him. He wasn't a freakin' girl. He didn't have _moods._

A little, yellow bird tweeted in agreement overhead. Hyde slowed and peered up at the dancing bird, twittering away happily. Slowly and stealth-like, he reached up to the low branch and tried to touch it. It gave him an angry look with those beady eyes and flittered away, chattering irately at him while doing so. It flew up into the darkening sky, and Hyde was surprised when three other tinier birds raced after it, singing in squeaky, unsure voices. Hyde watched the disappearing forms and felt his chest tighten.

Everything seemed detached for a moment. He was a ghost, a visitor in the earthly world. The sidewalk tilted and suburban houses mixed with green grass. Then, all of a sudden, he found himself firmly stuck in between tight air molecules. In place. No movement permitted. As his vision cleared he brought a shaky hand to the back of his head and found a large, angry bump. Hyde raised an eyebrow and continued on his way, each step the more carefully executed.

**A/N: Reviews are much appreciated.**


	3. Envy and Hate

**Disclaimer: Borrowing Hyde for my own amusement.**

**A/N: This will have some scenes from the actual episode, but they also may be changed slightly or extended for my own purposes. **

Hunger gnawed at Hyde's stomach. As of recently he had been surviving on dryer-cooked French fries, popsicles, and beer. A sour stench radiated from his every pore and the dinginess of his clothes had reached a new level. And he could hear them- their idle morning chatter- mostly consisting of Red calling Eric a dumbass and Kitty attempting to calm the perpetual storm that was her husband.

Oh, and that smell. The lovely, sweet smell of waffles had an effect of immeasurable magnitude on the poor boy whose stomach was much worse for the wear.

So, today was apparently the day: the day that he would tell the occupants of the house that he had been sharing their place- without their knowledge.

His robe flapping open at his sides he walked into the kitchen and sat at the kitchen table, helping himself to a huge serving of waffles. He smirked and drank up their confused faces.

But then his insides squirmed. Because they demanded an explanation- and he could not give one. They got sidetracked, finally, by their normal debate. Mrs. Forman wanting to 'talk' about his feelings, Red agreed that he should keep it bottled up- like a true man. He really did not know how Eric survived- with these two constantly pulling him in opposite directions.

It was somewhat surprising how easily he was to obtain a spot in his sanctuary. He had assumed that he would be able to stay here- these were the _Formans_. But they bought his story that his dad transferred- he's a _bartender, _for chrissakes

Kitty just gave him a sweet, motherly kiss on the cheek and they went on with their breakfast. For some reason though, Hyde felt a surge of anger swell in his stomach and bubble up into his throat. The waffle stuck on the way down and he started coughing like a madman to get it out. Everyone started to stare at him and he quickly excused himself.

Staring into his reflection, Hyde tried to quell the waves of hate that were swirling through his body. Once his breath returned to normal he tried to pick apart his brain- analyzing the strange feelings he was battling. A few words came to mind- jealousy, resentment, hopelessness. When he looked at Eric's family he felt so much envy- because he knew it was something he'd never have. He wanteda mother to make him breakfast and kiss him on the cheek and worry over him. And then sadness washed over him because they had always welcomed him with open arms- treating him as their own- but deep down he knew that it wasn't real.

A pound on the door knocked him out of his thoughts. "Hyde? Hey, man, I need to get ready for school. Open up."

Hyde glared into the mirror once more before opening the door to reveal his friend. "Hyde, are you okay? You looked a little freaked out back there."

A smirk passed Hyde's lips. "Me- freaked out? You're the one who has anxiety permanently etched on their face. Jeez, you're annoying. Go worry about Donna or school or some lame-assed stuff like that."

Eric rolled his eyes and brushed past him, slamming the door in his face.

Okay, then.

Next up- surviving another school day.

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Instead of waiting for Eric to drive him, Hyde jogged to Fez's host's family's house and waited outside. His foreign friend walked out with a carefree smile and a pop tart in hand. "Hyde, what are you doing here? I thought you drove with Eric?"

Hyde started walking and Fez followed him without a second thought. He mumbled something about wishing that more of his friends would pay him a visit, and then took a satisfying bite out of his breakfast.

A hand snatched the pop tart and Hyde finally spoke, bits of food spraying out as he talked. "Yeah, well, I couldn't deal with listening to him and all his little kiddie problems today. God, Forman really gets on my nerves sometimes."

Fez gave him a strange look. "But Eric's your best friend."

Hyde's stomach rolled over painfully for the second time that day. With a green-tinted face he handed back the pop tart. To his munching friend he said, "You know, man, I think I got a weird stomach thing 'cause for like the past week I've been all pukey."

He held his stomach in demonstration and groaned a little.

It was then that the Vista Cruiser rode up beside them- Eric and Donna in tow. Those two confused the hell out of him- they were fighting but Eric would still drive her to school. He acted as her lapdog even after they broke up.

Eric rolled down the window while slowing the car down to Hyde's pace, ignoring the cars that honked and swerved to drive around him. "What are you doing, Hyde? I thought I was going to drive you."

Donna rolled her eyes in the passenger seat and Fez gave him a look that had _"I told you so" _written all over it. Hyde felt a little twinge of guilt but easily ignored it. "Well, sorry, man. I guess I forgot to tell you I was walking with Fez today."

Donna nervously looked at her watch. "Come on, Eric, let's go. We have to get there early for that study group in the library, remember?"

Eric glanced at the pair. "Oh, right. Do you guys want a ride?"

When Fez started to say yes Hyde nudged him with his elbow and shook his head. "Nah, we're good. Go on ahead- don't wanna miss a morning of studying, now do 'ya?"

"Um, okay. See you around, then, I guess."

As he sped up Hyde heard him say to Donna, "That was really weird- he never turns down a free ride anywhere. He actually decided to _walk?_"

They halted at a stop sign a few paces ahead and Donna answered him. "Yeah, he's been acting really strange lately. Remember at the movie theater? I'm kind of getting worried."

"You know what- his dad left a little while ago. He's been living in the basement again. He said that his dad transferred but I don't really believe him. I bet that's why he's been acting funny- I'm going to figure out where his dad really went."

The car jerked and sped away, leaving Fez and Hyde in its dust.

Oh, great now he'd have to fend off all of Eric's nosy questions and attempts at pretending to care. Fez, having heard the conversation, turned to Hyde questioningly. "You're dad left? That's sad."

Hyde shrugged off his well-meaning sympathy. "No biggie, man. The guy was a dead-beat, anyway. He left me once before and I dealt with it fine. What's so different now?"

Fez didn't answer and they walked the rest of the way to school in silence.

**A/N: Reviews are appreciated. **


	4. overdosing in denial

**Disclaimer: I have sent letter after letter, and yet they still have not given me ownership of Hyde. No matter, I shall prevail!**

**A/N: This story may take turns which lead it to completely different plots than the episode and may even become slightly AU, and maybe a bit OOC. But one thing will remain the same- it will be filled with Hyde angst. Enjoy. **

Hyde stood with his head tilted upwards, thumbs hooked in his pockets, and a blank glaze over his eyes. Fez observed him curiously, wondering if he should push him towards the school that he was staring at, leave him be and miss being late to homeroom, or completely abandon his mysterious friend. As more minutes passed and Hyde remained rooted to his spot on the sidewalk, Fez sighed and rushed past him- racing against the late bell that was shrilling in his ears.

It was deathly quiet on the school grounds- all the boisterous students confined inside the jail-like building- forced into listening to the drone of the vice-principle giving announcements. He didn't know why he even pretended to go to school anymore. Recently, he just couldn't seem to get his feet to move past the front door. He shuffled his feet- the material of his Uncle's boots scraping off in chunks onto the ground- and sent his legs encouraging orders to _move, dammit!_

They held out, though, and Hyde and his obstinate legs kept up this battle for another ten minutes. He was surprised when the double doors a few meters in front of him opened to reveal a harried looking teacher, reading glasses swinging from her neck and her lips set in a thin line, accentuating the wrinkles that teachers always seemed to get from the various rebels in the school.

"Mr. Hyde, come with me, please. Mr. Jacobs would like to see you." Her tone was cold and commanding- the combination to which teachers believed students responded best, but was actually just a catalyst for resentment.

The walk to his guidance counselor's office reminded him eerily of the myriad of times he had been arrested- the monotonous march to the jail cell, or school, if you will. Her fingernails digging painfully into his arm, the grim teacher led him into Mr. Jacobs' office. As he stared into the well-worn, detached face of his counselor, Hyde almost wished for the pain of the woman's nails.

"Sit down, Steven. I'd like to talk to you for a moment."

Mr. Jacobs talked with his whole face- mouth opening wide, showing a mess of yellow teeth, eyes scrunching tiredly, and the gigantic mole on his weathered cheek making the harrowing journey across his face. Hyde, wanting to avoid noticing this, leaned back into the musty chair and looked at the faded pictures behind his counselor's balding head.

A young girl with messy brown hair wrestling with a puppy. A newborn sleeping in a crib- peace written across his delicate features. Filling up a quarter of the bulletin board hung a family portrait, the four family members dressed in Christmas garb with giant smiles on their faces.

It made Hyde want to punch somebody.

Pictures didn't tell a thousand words. They told a thousand lies.

People were never that happy. Just because a nutty photographer told you to yell out 'cheese' did _not _mean that your days were filled with rainbows and unicorns and… love. People laughed all the time- usually shallow laughs at others' expense- and just because you were able to capture that one distinct moment with your lens, doesn't mean that those laughing people's hearts were constantly filled with joy.

The smiling girl probably grew up to be a slut and was living with some pimp-y looking son of a bitch in a ratty apartment with three babies that she doesn't know how to take care of. The calmly sleeping babe probably grew into an aggressive adult, who beat his wife and only saw his father once every two years to ask for money. And his wife got rid of him years ago, running away to France to live out her dream of being a chef, leaving only a happy portrait for him to remember her by.

And the dog would've gotten hit by a car. A terrible accident- Mr. Jacobs didn't mean to- it was just a stressful day and as he pulled into the driveway- he just did not see poor Shirley (because without a doubt that's what they named the dog, a tribute to his wife's favorite show 'Laverne and Shirley.') They rushed her to the vet but there was internal bleeding and she was dead within hours. Maybe that's when it went downhill for the family- the day the mutt died.

Running out of potential, devastating circumstances for his unsuspecting counselor, Hyde brought himself back to the present- forced to concentrate on the ugly face speaking in front of him. "So, as I was saying, you can't just think about the _now _of things. You have to look towards the future. I know it may be tough to not play into the irresponsible manner of your peers- I _know _it's easy to slack off and pretend that life will be this easy forever…"

_Fuck off, Retard-o McBigmole._

Hyde tuned out the droning and thought back to the pictures. Hey, maybe the government is in cahoots with the photographers and the hallmark people. They want to make Americans look all happy and carefree so that the country will look better than it is. That makes perfect sense! _I mean, come one, no one's _actually_ happy. What a scam! Glad I caught on to it, now to spread the word- maybe in today's circle. _

Hyde's head shot up, causing his neck to make a loud cracking noise, as the one-sided conversation took a new turn. "It has come to my attention that your father has left. Is this true?"

Hyde could only stare him down, hoping that flames really _could _shoot out of his eyes at the man, like he was pretending. "He got transferred. But I'm living at my friend's house and I'm just as happy as a clam- we're one big, happy family."

Sarcasm dripped from every word uttered. The man sitting behind the desk ignored it though and wrinkled his bushy eyebrows together in pity. _Fake pity. He likes to see me squirm, is all._

"Being _abandoned_ by one's family can be very difficult on an adolescent. Now, would you like to talk about it? It's good to get things off that chest of yours, am I right?"

The man laughed heartily, in a faux-comforting manner. Hyde seethed. "I told you before, my dad was _transferred_!"

His chest was tight and all of his cells seemed to join together in pure hatred of this man. Mr. Jacobs avoided his gaze of fury, mostly by shifting and blowing his nose repeatedly. When he met his gaze, the man's face seemed wiser- knowledgeable- and showed that he did not believe a word of it. He no longer looked pitying, mostly just resigned sadness showed in his eyes. "I'm sure."

That was it- _I'm sure. _

Hyde couldn't believe this. Not being able to look into the disgusting face any longer he shot up from the chair and dashed out of the office as quick as his legs could take him.

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Poor orphan boy sits alone. Sits quiet. Sits with dark thoughts swirling in his head.

Hyde leaned back against the moldy tile of the boy's bathroom wall, boots positioned on top of the toilet seat, butt planted firmly at the top of said toilet- out of sight of passersby. Said dark thoughts were mostly about how he had sunken to a new low.

Voices floated into his private stall. Chirpy freshmen whispering about dirty magazines, jocks laughing over some dumb joke, a few seniors worrying to each other about college. At some point Eric had walked in, complaining to no one in particular about spilling pop all over his shirt. Hyde closed his eyes and pretended he wasn't there- wishing that anything familiar would just float away and disappear in the abyss. No one knew him. Because he did not exist.

As soon as the door swung shut, signaling Eric's departure, Teddy Castles walked in. Hyde waited until after he took a leak to peek his head over the stall, raising his eyebrows at the boy. "Hey- Castles, man. You got anything good today?"

The boy jumped in shock but quickly recovered, an obnoxious grin spreading across his pimply face. "Well, look who we have here. Aw, Hyde, are you hiding from the jocks? Don't you worry, man; I'll protect your sorry ass. You are my main client, after all."

From where he was standing precariously on top of the grimy toilet, Hyde slapped him over the head. "Oh, put a sock in it! Now are you worth my time or not, 'cause I've got stuff to do."

Castles raised an eyebrow and gave him the once over. "Sorry, but you don't look too busy at the moment. Do you always hang around in toilet stalls?"

Hyde glared at him and tried to tackle him over the stall, which resulted in him losing his balance and doing a flip over the plastic wall, landing on his butt next to Castles' feet. With a groan he got to his feet and rubbed his sore behind. "Let's just get on with it, 'kay?"

The boy suddenly had a business-like air, a keen twinkle in his eye. "Well, Hyde, I don't have your usual order, but I _do _have something a bit better, which I think you'll enjoy."

Hyde was wary of the conniving bastard but gestured at him to go on. The boy gave a cattish grin and rifled through his backpack. With a quick look over his shoulder, he handed Hyde a bag.

Only a few seconds later Teddy Castles was slightly richer than he was leaving his French class ten minutes earlier, and Hyde had found a way to occupy the rest of the school day.

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Exactly five hours and fifteen minutes later Hyde woke to find a group of people standing over him. His body was painfully sluggish and it took his eyes a moment to adjust. Eric and Kelso stood over him, looking like they were about to have panic attacks. Eric spoke first. "Hyde, um, what are you doing?"

It was then that Hyde noticed that he was lying on the bathroom floor and his head was resting on a toilet seat. His voice was so hoarse and cracked that he could barely recognize it. "Christ, man, what time is it?"

Eric rolled his eyes. "It's 3 o'clock, Hyde! Have you been on the floor the whole freakin' day?"

Apparently he had been. He let out a groan and felt his insides revolt against him. He leaned over the toilet that was formerly his pillow. A long groan escaped his lips. "I feel like I've been hit by a goddamn train."

Eric whispered under his breath. "You are such a fucking idiot."

He gestured with his arms wildly, anger apparent in his bugged-out eyes. What the hell did he have to be angry about?

Then Eric calmed and started to take his focus away from Hyde's collapsed form, which made his eyes pop out even _further. _After a few seconds of shocked silence, he regained composure and finally said, "You're lucky it was us who found you, man. You would've so been sent off to the funny farm."

Kelso looked confused but then, after a swivel of his head, let out a sharp gasp. Then raucous laughter shook his body- he actually was forced to lean against the wall for support. It wasn't his normal laugh, though, he sounded kind of scared, actually. And as soon as the laughter started it had stopped, leaving the pair of boys to resume staring at their friend.

Hyde raised his head from the toilet and through bleary eyes searched for what they were going on about.

Scribbled across every inch of the four walls of plastic, black ink bleeding the letters together, was written- _lies._

**A/N: Please review this very strange story! **


	5. Reciprocated Jealousy

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

**A/N: This will start having more Eric in it, I think.**

The room spun around Hyde as he quickly backed out of the stall, eyes as wide as saucers behind his sunglasses. "What's going on? What the hell did you do? Are you pranking me or something?"

"We didn't do it!" Kelso moved behind Eric, fearing that Hyde might punch him.

Hyde's heart beat furiously inside his chest as he tried to comprehend what happened. When he stood his legs gave out under him and he fell onto his knees, shoulders slumped and disbelief showing on his face. He whispered to himself, forgetting that they were watching him. "This can't be happening, man. I'm going nuts- completely nuts."

He crossed his legs Indian-style and dropped his head into his hands, rubbing his eyes. Kelso peered over Eric's shoulder, still looking a bit frightened, and Eric's eyes seemed to bore into him, confused and demanding an explanation. Hyde avoided their gazes. "I don't… I don't know what happened."

Kelso ran a hand through his hair, uncomfortable. "Um, we should get going, guys. They're gonna lock the doors soon."

Eric mumbled in agreement and went to help Hyde up, but he just slapped his hand away. "Hey- I don't need any help!"

His boots squeaked as he cautiously untangled his legs to stand. The room twirled nauseatingly around him and his body swayed. His eyes rolled into the back of his head and he fell back onto the hard floor with a thud.

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Eric gripped the steering wheel tight and alternated glaring at his friend and watching the road. "Jesus Christ, Hyde, what did you take?"

Hyde only stared out the Vista Cruiser's window. Dark clouds were low in the sky, and heavy rainfall coated Wisconsin. The drops hit the window monotonously and Hyde watched their path down the glass, zigzagging this way and that. The rain drowned out all outside sound. "Whatever, man. Nothing happened, okay? So stop being such a freak about it."

"You could've died!" His voice was unsure, like he knew something bad was going on but he didn't know how to stop it.

"I'm fine. So, just shut up, already!" His head was pounding and Eric's voice sent spikes of pain behind his eyes.

"Well… um… FINE… I _will _shut up!" He faltered and tilted his head, trying to put together a more coherent sentence.

Kelso, from the backseat, swiveled his head back and forth between the two, confounded as ever. "Could he really have died? You can't die at _school_. I mean, damn, Hyde, think of that going in the newspaper. 'Steven Hyde- died on the boys' bathroom floor, 'fro stuck in a toilet bowl.'"

Hyde reached behind the seat and frogged him, not wanting to envision what he said. "Will you all just SHUT THE FUCK UP! I am FINE, freaking PERFECT! I wasn't going to die. Nothing happened!"

Kelso crossed his arms and pouted, sinking into the seat. Eric glared at him. "Well, then, Mr. Hyde, how do you explain us finding you _passed out._"

"I… I fell asleep. And since when are you the poster-boy for sobriety? I don't see you complaining when I hook you up."

Eric was such a fucking hypocrite, and Hyde wished that the car would just crash. Who cared if they all died- at least he would get out of this stupid conversation.

Eric sighed. "This is different, and you know it. Why have you been so weird lately?"

Hyde huffed and fiddled with the seatbelt, while Eric continued. "Is it about your dad? Really, where is he?"

Hyde remained silent and wished that he had died back there, embarrassment of the location beside the point. It would've been so much easier. Why did they have to find him? Why did Eric have to be so goddamn insistent? Why did he care so much?

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Eric and Hyde sat on opposite sides of the kitchen table, silent and fuming. Kitty obliviously went on with her story. "So, then… it turned out that _Bob_ was the one who took the mower! Ha ha ha!"

Red gestured with his forkful of meatloaf. "You know, Kitty, he is getting bolder and bolder. If he _takes_ one more thing of mine, I am just going to have to _take _my foot and put it in his ass!"

Hyde laughed with them, patting Red on the back and saying, "Good one, Red."

Eric rolled his eyes at his plate. "Yeah, so original- It's not like we haven't heard a 'foot in ass' joke before. No siree."

Red glared at him, fork still mid-air, poised to stab him in the chest. "Are you being a smart-ass, boy?"

Eric's 'fear of Red' look crossed his face and he automatically responded, "No, sir."

His cantankerous father lowered his fork. "Good! You know, Eric, you should try to be more like Steven. He's not a smart-ass, are you Steven?"

Hyde smiled at him. "Of course not, why would I want to ruin a perfectly good meal with sarcasm?"

Eric glared at him, knowing full-well that the only difference between them was that they could see through Eric's sarcasm and not Hyde's. He knew that his father would completely change his outlook if he told him what happened at school.

He started to open his mouth, Hyde kicked him under the table- seeing what he was about to do. But then he just closed it again- that pesky loyalty grabbing hold of him. If Hyde wanted to act like a dumbass, then he could. Eric wouldn't hold him back.

Knowing that he wouldn't say anything, Hyde changed the conversation. "Thanks for letting me stay here, Mrs. Forman. I know money's tight."

Kitty looked adoringly at him. "Oh, honey, it's no problem at all. We love having you here. You're just a big, old ray of sunshine."

Eric burst out laughing and his mother gave him a look. She wasn't even being sarcastic! They really did like Hyde better than him. His own parents! Life sucked when you were Eric Forman.

He was suddenly jealous of Hyde. He had nothing… yet he had everything. He had so much potential and he didn't use it. He always learned things easier than Eric did and could've gone on to a good college if he tried. _Everything_ came easily to him- friends, girls. He was the king of laid-back coolness, and Eric was the twitchy sidekick.

He pushed his plate away and left the table to go sulk in his- or wait, now it's _Hyde's- _basement. Hyde watched him go, wondering what he had to be in a bad mood about.

**A/N: Please, review.**


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